Conscious Immortality

Tiruvanamali is one place that's closer to my heart for its strong positive spiritual vibes. Ramana ashram, Arunachaleshwara temple, holy hill of Arunachala , girivalem (circumbulation around holy hill) are highlights that one should visit. During my recent visit, I bought book "Conscious Immortality : Conversation with shri ramana maharishi " which recorded deep insights of spiritual knowledge which shook my very core . Below are some quotes that touched me deeply

Ishwara is Immanent in every person and every material object throughout the universe. The totality of all things and beings constitutes God. There is power out of which a small fraction has become all this universe, & the reminder is in reserve. Both this reserve power plus the manifested power as material world together constitute Isvara

The realised man knows neither past, present, future. He is above time for he lives in the Timeless Self. He will just watch & wait and see what happens. He let's things take their course. He resigns all to the Absolute Power which one can call God or karma . There is no egoism within him. Restrictions & discipline are for jivas not for muktas.

Q. Once I was self reliant . Now I fear old age.

A. Even when younsaid you were self reliant, it was not so.  you were ego-reliant .in place of that of you let ego go , you will get real self reliance. Your pride is merely pride of ego.

                           xxx 

Why did you approve building skandaashram on hill which is temple land without obtaining permission from authorities?

Guided by same power which made me come & reside on the hill.

  

False ego is associated with objects. If a man's happiness is due to outer cause & external possessions, then a man devoid of possessions should have no happiness whatever.You are source of all your happiness whatsoever it be & not external things. Even when you imagine soke external object has given you happiness, you are mistaken. What really happened ,is that, Unconsciously The Object brought you back for a flash to your Self, borrowed the happiness & thus presented it to you. The happiness came as shadow to you. Why not look for source & realise it? 

..Trace every thought back to its origin which is the mind; never allow thought to go on, if it does,  it will be unending.  Thoughts die of inaction, for mind only exists by thought. Take away thought& there is no mind. Tear everything away until there is nothing but source left. Live only in the present. Either seek it's source so that it may disappear or surrender, that it may be struck down.

If you seek God with your whole heart, then you may be assured that the Grace of God is also seeking you. If the longing is there , realisation will be forced even if you do not want it.

xxx

Pride of learning and desire for appreciation are condemned,  not the learning itself.

Meditation without mental activity is Mouna. Meditation must be so intense as not even to give room for the consciousness of the idea " iam meditating ". Give yourself up to deep meditation . Throw away all other considerations of life. The calculative life will not be crowned with spiritual success. Yes, complete surrender initially is not possible. Partially surrender which incourse will lead to complete surrender.

Why do not the mahatmas help the world?

How do you know they do not help? Public speeches, physical activity & material help are all outweighs by silence of mahatmas. They accomplish more than others. A Self realised being very existence bestows highest good to the world. He is not the body.  His work lies within. By a rishi sitting in one place, all things can be done. If He wills,  he can bring in wars or end them.  But he knows that there is cosmic & karmic process going on. So he won't interfere unwisely. Silence of sage gives permanent benefit & instructions to humanity. A realised one sends powerful waves of spiritual influence in his aura which draws many people towards Him. Yet he may sit in cave & maintain silence.

A realised one, though he is not speaking,  will give much to world. If necessary, he can use others as instruments.

XXX

More things can be achieved by silence & more thoughts are conveyed by silence to a wider world. Preaching is simply communication of knowledge. It can be done in silence too.

Each one has to work for himself. 

                                 xxxx

The existence of higher power must be admitted & recognized. Ego is powerful elephant which can be tamed by presence of Guru. Guru, God, Grace all are synonymous. Gurus grace is more than study & meditation. Your remembrance of guru is forerunner of grace. Go on working with light you have, you will meet your guru.

Guru doesn't bring about realisation. He merely removes obstacles.

If the thinker is sought, the thoughts will disappear. The seer seen & the sight are all manifestation of same conscious ie ' I' . Dhyana helps one remove the illusion that the Self must be visual.

Xxxx 

Mind should be destroyed entirely , not merely arrested 

Vision add zest to meditation but does nothing more

Anything which has to be attained is not the Reality ,not the Truth. We are already the Reality, The truth. The idea that you have to find yourself is foolish one. What is there to find ?.According to that there are two persons- one searching for the other. So you are the true self. But wrongly identifying with ego (ahamkara) & the body.

Peace is the inner nature of man. If you find within yourself, you will find it everywhere.

Xxx

Through poetry, music etc one sometimes experiences a sense of deep bliss . There is happiness in agreeable sights. All colors, feeling, experiences in meditation are all only mental conceptions.  They come & go. Be only witness.

Absence of thought does not mean blank. There must be one to know the blank. What is illusion? Find out To whom is illusion then illusion will disappear.

Others are not responsible for what happens to us. They are only instruments for what would happen to us someway or other. Let us be strong in faith & not succumb to fear. Whatever happens, happens according to our prarabdha. Let it exhaust itself. Evil intentions & evil actions will react themselves & not affect us simply because they desire it. One is required not to think of oneself, so why there be anxiety regarding others?

Why is that sorrow & evil in universe ?

God will. No motive can be attributed to that power. No desire No goal to achieve , can be asserted of that all powerful being. God like the sun is untouched by the activities which take place in His presence .if the human mind is unsatisfied or restless on account of events, it's a good solution to accept God's will as the solution ; thus it is wise to drop the sense of responsibility & freewill ,by regarding ourselves as the instruments of God, to do & suffer  as He pleases.

Mirage does not disappear even after knowing it to be mirage. The appearance persists but now the man does not run to it for water.

                                 xxx

Rajendra Prasad, president of congress asks what message should he convey to Mahatma Gandhi: Maharshi says When heart speaks to heart, what need is there for words?

Occult powers are in realm of mind only. The powers are in mind only. They are not worth trying for. Occult powers will not give happiness. What are they for? To make others praise ones ego. God, Self is the highest power & most worth seeking. That which results in peace is highest Occult power.

Decade with Art of Living

I just had finished my Silence retreat meditation at Art of living centre, Bangalore. It was amazing

Inner stillness & outer quietude. Swimming in deep rippleless tranquility & peace. Not that anything changed in life, but these 3 days silencw meditation was very deeply restful.  Not that thoughts haven't risen but they slowed down considerably. At one point they were lazily sauntering that they hardly registered their presence or was found disturbing. More like droplets on lotus leaf. Well, now back to workplace & daily grind beckons

My connection with art of living & Sri Sri Ravi Shankar goes back to more than decade. As kid, I used to read his articles in news paper though never felt that I would see Him personally or do any of his meditation camps. Decade later I attended his meditation camps & follow up across India, one even ashram in Gawahati (assam) on banks of Brahmaputra.

Though I'm not debating if His techniques work or not as to some it click and to some it doesn't or they don't do it diligently...I continued for a decade & I can vouch 100% it has worked for me. Sudarshan kriya keeps me grounded and handle daily chaos & contradictions & mentally very calm. My first Sudarshan kriya experience is recorded here in link

http://matrixstrikesback.blogspot.com/2010/12/sudarshan-kriya.html?m=1

Entire architecture in ashram is so aesthetic and earthy. Gently merging with nature around. So calm and beautiful. Away from humdrum of city traffic & noise. Waking up to nature sounds like wind & chirpy birds is such a blessing.

I had numerous experiences with Guruji. Mystical & physical. Though physically I saw or came near to him just twice. I was posted to extreme corner of country and was in aol centre. As huge crowds were there to welcome him, I was sitting in  corner of line. Though not really enthusiastic to meet him,I just developed thought "Guruji, iam leaving south India for long time, it would be nice to catch ur attention for a moment ". He actually walked away few steps ahead of me & for a moment stopped, walked back, tapped me with rose & walked away. Wow. It was so surreal.

We hardly appreciate knowledge & wisdom being shared at AOl. In Ancient days, same knowledge would be shared by teacher to students for in decades while everything is available for us freely & easily. Ashtavakra Gita,  Shiva sutra, Naradbhakti sutra etc . Wisdom of these timeless epics make life so smooth & bearable. Even biographies of his students esp Michael Fishman "Stumbling into infinity " is so inspiring & worth reading.

...

The ashram boasts of vast stretches of greenery, lakes, wide variety of birds, butterflies & even snakes ( I read that of 20 varieties of snakes only 2 (krait & cobra) are highly venomous (eeeks). Beautiful part of staying in ashram is that we can avoid all hustle & bustle  noises of city. Fresh air, awakening to birds sounds in the field of extreme positivity is break we all need

AOL can boast of worlds maximum volunteers. The kind of service they do is phenomenal. Free schools  food to thousands, environmental sustainability, reviving dried water bodies and ofcourse meditation & protection of ancient dharma.. The Ashram is mini nation of utopia. It's volunteers were first responders to international crisis,  be it to build peace in terror hit areas like Columbia,  Sri Lanka (where LTTE planned to kidnap Guruji), Iraq to temple-masjid issue in ayodhya or kashmir. Truly inspiring.

My last brush with Guruji was when I was lying on hospital bed. Almost dead, body dying, flesh degenerating, doctors confounded & at one point I also gave up. When in extreme miserable condition, I either dreamed/hallucinate or had vision of Guriji who said " don't give up, hold for 2 more days, things will be fine"..well, immediately my confidence soared. Within 2 hours, misery lessened. 2 days I was back home. 30 days later I was on feet (doctors diagnosed it would take atleast 1 year).

Read more here

http://matrixstrikesback.blogspot.com/search/label/death?m=1

http://matrixstrikesback.blogspot.com/2012/10/omg-2-midnight-visions.html?m=1

Just another guru story where I received a mantra in my dream. To this day, that mantra gets automatically emerge whenever I face suddenness, fear or calamity

Walking alone in stretches of nature was such a soothing experience 

Your jeeva is shiva !

....There is some magic in ashram which we won't get anywhere. The moment one steps into it, we feel heightened sense of sweetness & Calmness. Energies go high. We mistakenly often attribute it to people around. But I believe its the field of high positivity & energies that elevate our souls.

I'm ever grateful to Guruji for His wisdom & meditation techniques I learnt. When zillion factors are influencing human from all directions and realms, it's my super lucky good karma that I came across Guruji in this life.

Once I did PLR where we dig into past lives. Either it was my illusion or I actually saw a glimpse where my connection went back to Guruji from.past lives. I actually saw myself as plant in Guruji ashram (yeah, a plant). In other lives I saw myself as Tibetan woman,  artist, fish & desk officer in world War 2. 

Now all those past lives seem to have continued to this life. I was quite an artist till my teenage with magnetic attraction towards Tibetan Buddhism and big fan of world War history and my sunsign is Pisces- the fish.

With meditation group. 

I surrender

 Call me fatalistic or nihilistic or Buddhist but I no longer try to control the situation or people. I began to believe that Chaos & Calmness are what human life forever will be. No matter how wealthy, resourceful & spiritual u r, uncertainty, confusions & chaos will be there.

I choose no longer to judge others in general and primarily myself in particular. If I'm born fool, so be it. Even ants r somehow surviving on this planet, even I will manage somehow.

There is no significance of any event nor I consider any person is special or The One. Life will always be chaotic with gaps filled with waiting for elusive moments of happiness. Nothing can be predictable or goes per plan. Planning works to certain extent but beyond a point, it's all uncertainty & live/act moment by moment.



There is nothing like God's plan for events occured (as religion consoles gullible )or Positive thinking or Affirmations that would change one's life (Except authors bank accounts) . All these are hooks that we hang ourself to explain inexplicable events & pegs for hoping better tomorrow.


Earth is formed from Big bang, hence so would our lives be..always bang bang..now its for me to accept Bang Bang as normal or keep perpetually fighting against it in frustration. I rather ride the waves of uncertainty & take whatever life throws at me than question why it happened or how it should have happened. Like someone said, Life under no circumstances need to follow ur desires or diktats.

U can b most kind person or honest, still bad things might come to u. This is how life was always & eventually will be. Criminal would live in mansion while honest person suffering from hunger. Person who follows healthy diet die young of chronic disease while binge eater live till old age & die peacefully.

"Life is always unfair. Get used to it" - Bill Gates

Saying that, following some rules, discipline, etc may give some satisfaction & "probable" results & some greater hope of leverage over life. But otherwise life has no meaning..I no longer control life..take whatever comes and try to make best of what possible for me and leave the rest to fate and give a damn which ever direction it goes.

Yes, saying that, there are moments of bliss , wonder & awe of life. How gigantic it is. So endless, vast that one life of human or planet or galaxies stand millionth of dust in schemes of Creation. When I see my own insignificance in this gigantic Creation, all my issues vaporize. When I realise this, my senses fall silent....I surrender ...!!!

Seeker guides on spiritual odyssey

 My fascination with Fables n Fairy tales began on my mother lap as a kid whileshe narrated stories from folklore & mythology. Among all those tons of books on spirituality i read i bring out few best within my limited understnding. All are extremely good hence there is no best among this list.Each has its own speciality n uniquness.Here i go:

* Warning : some of these might be accused of being charlatans. Use your own judgment. My opinion is simple: i take what benefits me & leave the world opinion to world.

1. Autobiography of yogi & Himalayan masters by Paramahamsa Yogananda & Swami Rama
I bracket them under one kind. Both are amazing journeys of boy saints under their respective enlightened Masters from India to America. Probably they are best export of India to west after Swami Vivekananda . Both books speak of amazing anecdotes of siddhis. While Yogananda exposed world to amazing immortal Babaji , Swami Rama spoke on Himalayan traditions & was.also accused as CIA agent in India & fraud in America. Film Baba by Rajinikanth was partly influenced by both the books. Books by both the authors subsequent to these are great read to whet spiritual appetite of seekers & aspirants.

 

2. Stumbling into Infinity by Micheal Fishman: Author is one of foremost disciple of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar who started Art of Living. It’s bitter-sweet roller-coaster journey of Author with Guruji. It’s not story of miracles & wonders but gentle story of doubting disciple journey before becoming ardent believer. It is also story of Sri Sri from his days under Mahesh Yogi of Transcendental Meditation , building of organization, authors part in growing up etc. Ashtavakra Gita by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is quite a revelation which is well interpreted for modern times. I came to know later that Mahesh Yogi who was most popular Guru in 60s (Beatles trained yoga under him) was also teacher to Jaggi vasudev (Isha foundation), Rishi Prabhakar (SSY) & Sri Sri Ravi Shankar (AoL).

3. “Destined into infinity by Stephen Knapp” & “He came to set Captives free by Rebecca Brown” & “Reminisences of seeker by Kapil Bhaskar ”
These three can be termed as spiritual thrillers though I can’t say how true the stories are. First two are more or less same while third can be read free on Kindle Unlimited. First was written by ISCKON devotee & the story is about foreigner who on visit to India discovers that he is destined to battle asuras with help of his Master who teaches him Narayana mantras while Rebecca claims to be help exWitch to fight against Satanists who allegedly infiltrated into society through catholic church & new age teachings (that included Lord Shiva, Yoga, meditation, TV series etc through which Satan controls humans). Again she was declared as fraud. However book was quite edgy. Similarly Kapil Bhaskar (he can be found on FB) states that he used occult to grow rich & famous . His ex Gurus in occult use him to get themselves rich & powerful. But in this process loses a.lot ,however later he was saved by genuine Guru.

4. Aghora Trilogy by Robert Svoboda 

Life is mere memory ., be it beautiful or bitter, its just a memory” muses Aghori Vimalananda. I read that line in Odessey book store when i was a teen. I never got enough funds to buy that book. I had to wait for another 5 years before i could lay my hands on it

Aghora 1(the Left hand of God); Aghora 2(Kundalini); Aghora 3 (Law of Karma). When i read Aghora-1 for the first time i lost half my sleep in nights due to sheer fear.All books i read till now are books that go easy on reader but Aghora triology is no-holds-barred .He shows no mercy and is often ruthlessly frank.No sugar coating for benefit of ignorant reader.These books are of Left hand of Tantra. Aghoris themslves are fierce saints who are said to eat dead bodies and these books “Left hand of Tantras” are more extreme in frankness. Though not suggested for faint hearts, neverthless its very informative which would open new grooves in your brain
Western world or urban populace knew less of Aghora Sadhus till these books came out. Author dispels myths around these ferocious saints who are said to eat human meat& involve scary rituals. The book is of author & his interactions with Vimalananda Aghori. Vimalananda lives like any city dweller in city, gambles in horses, enjoys life to peak as householder while being intense devotee of Goddesses. He opens the world of Aghora discipline & culture to his disciples while ordering him not to publish about him for 20 yrs after his death. Very fantastic book.

5. Buddhism:

Meditation has now become synonymous with image of serene Buddha in meditative state. Buddha was first revolutionary who defied existing status quo & order of the day. The popular memory of Buddhism is always maroon robed lamas, hidden esoteric potala palace of gentle Dalai Lama & mystical monasteries. Tibetan Buddhism (sikkim, ladakh, Tibet, Arunachal) was hidden under mystery almost till China occupied it. Padmasambhava, Milerepa, Nagarjuna etc great torch bearers of Buddhist wisdom that pervades to this day.

Lobsang Rampa (Author of 13 books with “The third eye “ being most popular) spoke about most bizzare wonders & powers of lamas. Aliens, secret passages into earth, astral travel to distant plans, invisibility, 3rd eye operations, soul transfer etc (wiki him for more) Western audiences didn’t know how to see his phenomenon as till that time no one could claim to be expert on Tibetan Buddhism . To my utter luck, I discovered book by unknown author made concise book including interesting parts of all 13 books. My interest in spirituality as 17 year old was totally due to his books.

Jetsunma Tenzin palmo, bio “Cave in the Snow”
is about European lady who gets attracted to Buddhism & comes to India. Does severe 12 year penance in snowy caves (3 yrs in total isolation) of Himalayas. She takes a vow to get enlightened in female form but had to stop her penance as her visa gets expired. Her fb posts & book is certainly insightful read. Inspirational as seldom we see female saints in modern world.(atleast I don’t know).

Few days ago I read “a step away from paradise by Thomas Shor” . It’s story of Saint who unsuccessfully tries to.open mystical land of Utopia in sikkim. He is joined by 200 followers who give up everything to join his once a lifetime journey. This gives peek into world of mysticism & Buddhist legends. This mystery land “Beyul Demoshong ” is land hidden by Padmasambhava (Saint who took Buddhism to Tibet aka Guru Riponche). Apparently, Padmasambhava foreseeing future hides treasures (wisdom, prayers, location of land etc) in earth, human memory etc to be awakened at time when it’s right. Amazing.

“Tibetan book of dead” is quite popular. Though I read it as teenager, now I don’t have recollection of it.

6. Born Again: Reincarnation Cases Involving International Celebrities, India’s Political Legends and Film Stars is Book by Walter Semkiw

&
Brian Weiss “Many life Many Masters “

These books shook minds of Western audience as they speak of reincarnation. For Asians, reincarnation is accepted fact but for Westerners, it’s unpalatable. Born Again charts who were who in past which includes Rekha, Indira Gandhi, Nehru, Abdul kalam etc. This book states that Tipu sultan has reincarnated as Kalam while his father Haider Ali was born as Vikram sarabhai, great scientist who was kalam guru. Both were rocket pioneers reborn later to finish what they started 400 yrs ago. In Wings of Fire (autobio of Abdul kalam), Kalam says how he was struck at picture of tipu sultan firing rockets in American lab. Perhaps his ancient memory was woken up momentarily.

Many life Many Masters ” is about past life regression by hypnosis where author discovers many past lives of his patients. He concludes many of phobias are due to past life experiences.

7. “Journey back home” by Radhanath Maharaj is bio of another westerner who comes in search of truth in India. At age of 14, author expresses weird nature in America, like, he couldn’t sit on chair to eat, or being vegetarian etc. At 17, he becomes hippie, travels across world to India. He tries various sadhanas with masters before he surrenders to Prabhupadha of Isckon. Currently he heads Mumbai Iskcon Temple. When I first heard of this book, I couldn’t afford it and five years later mysteriously someone gifts me this saying, he is not much a reader & book is lying idle for last 5 years.

8. There are many more interesting books by/on jaggi vasudev, Neem karoli baba, Dalai lama, Nityananda , Osho, Ramana maharishi etc but somehow either I didn’t connect well or I haven’t read. I haven’t added Om Swami memoir here as we all know about it & are here only after reading it. More than memoir I absolutely loved “Million thoughts “, “All is not well”, “Kundalini,” The wellness sense”,. Mahatria “Unposted letter “& “Most&More” are very modern, irreligius & can be read by any person of any age and greatly benefit from it, otherwise listen to his 5 minute videos on YouTube.

Phew, I started this post , however got so engrossed that I totally lost track of time. If you have come till this point, share which spiritual book had max impact on spiritual soulful odyssey?

Just wondering..

      I always wondered how few lines on paper can change course of history & change the future. Either of one person or country or entire humanity. Books that have ability to become agents of change.

Paulo coelho took only 18 days to finish "Alchemist " and it will influence for next 18 generations. Jules Verne wrote "20,000 leagues under the sea" and other exalted sci-fi books in 18th century when nòne of machines he wrote about were, even existed (that included Submarine & spacecraft's that influenced scientists in future).While "Holy Bible" continues to influence humanity , Das Capital & communist manifesto almost brought world on brink of world war. Not forgetting Books like Walden & Bagavatgita strengthened the will of Mahatma Gandhi to put curtains to British colonialism. Harry Potter books brought back millions of kids to read books and pull them away from online world and books like Autobiography of yogi , inspired world on Indian spirituality. If Mein Kampf by Hitler brought anger, Books by Dalai lama & Neslon Mandela brought awe in people..

I truly wonder how a person can write such inspiring books indeed..

Mesmerized Bibliophile

" When you read a great book, you dont escape from life, you plunge deeper into it"       -Julian Barne

 I just finished reading "The Calcutta Chromosome" by Amitav Ghosh. By time I completed the book, I was totally in daze. What a book! The way author spun the story, across the different time zones, myriad characters, -real& fictitious, myth & modern, Science & Superstitions, all disparate yet forming beautiful mosaic in the end. All different threads of narration coalescing to form beautiful story in the end. Its sheer genius of Ghosh to write such a wonderful futuristic medical thriller blending beautifully with ancient myth. It’s so intimidating and intelligent that I dared not to pick another book of his.

Ever since I was a kid I am quite obsessed with stories. Be it mythological or comics or non fiction or urban legends as long as it is well written to catch my attention. But for last five years or so I hardly read any fiction as my life itself became more exciting that tales of fiction pales to  contented life I lead. So all these 5 years its always non-fiction with exception of “Keepers of Kalachakra by Ashwin Sanghi” (iam kinda loyalist of Ashwin works).

I really wonder, how an author can write a story. Weave words out of nothing to form brilliant narrative? Especially fiction, where no precedence exists. In Calcutta chromosome , Amitav Ghosh writes on internet, Alexia, Artificial intelligence, holographic communication when no such science even existed when book was written in early nineties. This takes me to another brilliant futuristic author, Jules Verne. In my teens i read his book “20,000 leagues under the sea” where he describes Submarine named Nautilus, scuba gear, electric stun guns all while not even steam engine was invented at that time. How could these authors sneak into future or did today inventors based their inventions on past authors imagination? Honoring Verne-the man who invented future , US Navy christened its first nuclear submarine as USS Nautilus.

What is heartwarming is that both books have Indian connection. Amitav Ghosh is Indian who with sheer brilliance sits on par with western authors and hero (or anti hero) of 20,000 leagues “Captain Neo” was described later as Indian Maharaja.

"Books are had bound drug with no danger of an over dose. i am happy victim of books"

The amazement to these futuristic authors doesn’t restrict to novels. Comics like Flash Gordon the space hero evokes similar wonder. When proper phone is not in vogue, there is space travel, teleportation, laser beams, time travel, inter dimensional travel (long before Christopher Nolan came ith Intestellar film) etc. To this day comics like Flash Gordon, Mandrake, Phantom occupy golden part of my book collection.There might be many other authors like Asimov, Clarke or others but I haven’t read any of their work nor has capacity or class to touch them.

Now comes once again how could they spin tales on topics that doesn’t exist in that time period? How can you think unthinkable? Ever observed we seldom can claim any thought as 100% original. All our thoughts are just rehash or remix of existing/past thoughts. Nothing new or novel! I remember , as Advertising copy writer, I had only 2-3 original thoughts in 6 months and rest were just modification and additions to existing work. Buddhist or ancient Hindu texts speak of existence of plane where everything that has been and would be is stored. Like universal memory or Akashic records they say. 

"Thats the thing about books. They let you travel without moving your feet"  - Jhumpa Lahiri

Would writers’ (or inventors or film makers) imagination stretch beyond limits to new frontiers in space to access those records? Its like normal human beings minds are programmed to be in box and few (or chosen few? Now that’s something!) were able to break those boxes to soar higher or reach farthest ends of their mind that general humanity lost habit of or forgotten. Or some intelligent race (Aliens or Gods) insert ideas into human consciousness of chosen few for advancement of humanity? (In one comic Mandrake there is a story where aliens keep introducing diseases from space to keep humans busy or restrict them to earth than exploring galaxy). The chosen one like Neo in film Matrix?

Well, I have no clue. I am always curious to know and every work, when I come cross leaves me more amazed and more humble. But experiencing these things make my life more fulfilled and enriched. Poor aren’t those souls with less bank balance but those souls who don’t experience the wonders Universe presents. What a boorish snob he/she whose jaw doesn’t drop and daze at brilliance of   Creator Creativity and its/his/her Creation.

Bibliophile Banter

"Walking the stacks in a library, dragging your fingers across the spines — it’s hard not to feel the presence of sleeping spirits."

— Robin Sloan (Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore)

My friend was telling me other day over coffee, some songs have more emotional linkages than we can think of. They remind of people and past.  Well., music and movies were never my strong point. I hardly watch or pay attention to any song. I cant even sing even a single song for that matter. 

But I understand what he meant as I feel the same when I look at massive collection of my books. I don’t remember how I caught this habit of reading books but ever since I remember, iam reading books of all kinds expect school books. Every single day of my life, I read little or more of some book. I might have missed roti,kapada, makaan, but not a day passes without reading written word.

 My parents never were supportive of my obsession but at same time they never restricted it as well.

Last time I counted my collection , it was approximately 3000 books which was around 5-6 years ago. Everyday I think, I should stop this habit of mine and stop reading and buying books. Within a day of such resolution I break my word. Even before I can complete one book, dozen new books will be lined up for future. whenever I get in bad mood, I go shopping….for books ( shopping therapy always works for me). first thing i would do on going to a new city is to take membership of local library..inmidst of tons of books , serenity comes natural (if u r in hyd, this feeling of peace is very distinct in RKmath library, indirapark road. try it buddies..its amazing calmness one shud not miss)

One of my sweet pal asked me recently  “Do you re-read your books”??
Simple statement but profound philosophical question. Well, that’s my dream. I wish I can settle somewhere, on a rainy day ..over a hot  and spicy samosas, I read all my books over again. That’s my desire which so far unfulfilled. Maybe I have to wait for retirement.

I always wondered if these books shaped the way iam or coz the way I was I picked up these kind of books? 

Every book of mine will tell me tales that I had forgot. I am not keen on my life and memories. I seldom keep photos or souvenirs. But these books trap the environment of particular period. I have books of all kinds except Adult (I dnt know why..Penthouses n porn literature never appealed me). I own comics in thousands. Stolen books. Purchased books. Second hand books. GF given books. Forcibly gifted books. Old books. Ancient books.Spiritual books.Espionage books etc etc. I have all. 

All kinds of comics, some dating back to 1940s, rare comics like bruce lee and amitabh bachans (yeah he was featured in comics as well).  When I read my old comics ( yeah, I do..but with little emotional attachment) , or see dates inscribed on it by me, my old signature from school age or sometimes previous owner name and address  who bought that particular comic at princely amount of 1/- or 2/-  at period when I was not even born or sometimes dates just coincide with my birth date. I always entertain fantasy that how would it be if I take back that comic to owner NOW?..how would he/she react seeing the book which he read as a kid is brought back to him/her? Wondrous moment indeed!! Its amusing how for some books i had to wait years (sometime even 10 yrs) to lay my hands on them but eventually i always get my book.

my all time favourite: Calwin and Hoobes

As I see genres in my collection, I reconstruct my psychology..At different times , different genres attracted me. Dominant being Spiritual and Spy stuff (still iam drawn towards these two topics like crazy), others were being Comedy cartoons, International politics and biographies. But absolutely no sex and profane stuff. The smell of crispy yellowed paper still reminds me of book reading on rainy days of my buried past( Reminds me Enid blyton books). Some past!!( I read somewhere “ best future lies in forgotten past”). 

I have book for every mood.Some morose mood?Classic Wuthering heights by Emile bronte. Ambitious? Emil Ludwig Napoloen. Happy ?( Stumbling infinity by micheal fishmen).Excited?( world famous spies). Nostalgic ?( enid blyton books) Valour?(Vikramaditya stories) Devotion?(Indian mythology), Sports?( Abhinav bhindra bio) love???(well i have no romance in my collection hee)etc etc

There Is a world class classic book in my collection. "Twenty leagues under the Sea" by jules verne .Original and unabridged. I remember distinctively how ,daily I used to go to flea market and request hawker to give that at reduced price (he quoted 30/- ). He never obliged. So I used to hide that book underneath other books lest someone might buy it . Next day same story would be repeated. I request. he rejects. i hide and he takes it out. After a week of tussle he finally gave in for my price. Thirty rupees back then was like Kings ransom for me. Amusing. 

hilarious yet deeply philosophical

When I shifted to our own house, my books occupied 12 cartons. Now its ironic that e-copies of all Tintins and asterix and entire collection of puzos fit in my cell phone. I actually use to walk miles n miles…scouring books in shops, streets , even with scrap dealers for comics( I found heap of Mandrake comics with scrap dealer). Walking miles in rain and sun made comic book special but now all books can be down loaded at click of mouse though nothing can give you the feel of paper in your hand.

Iam always amazed at impact of written word. Imagine world without writers and books? Someone said, to kill civilization, just burn off the books. Entire past would be erased. Now I can walk on cobbled streets of London through Sherlock holmes or feel the pain of world during World wars or get the thrill of espionage during cold wars between USA and USSR. Thanks to books. Jules verne wrote of futuristic inventions like submarine and electricity even before they were created. No wonder , America honoured him by naming its 1^st nuclear submarine as USS Nautilus. Jules verne-the man who invented future.  my imagination gets fired up when I read lines like “I the mind, body mere auxillary”( Sherlock holmes), Chess is life - Bobby Fischer, defeat is not in my dictionary, or the shell that can kill me has not been cast- napoleon Bonaparte (that single line changed the course of war). l will make an offer that he cant refuse (Godfather obviously, Al Pacino in film was just super awesome) Giving up is not my style (naruto)

Now when I see my collections, I get amused and wonder. What do I do with all these books? I think I should stop buying more. How many would I read? To what consequence? Where will be the End? Well I think, there is no end to this obsession ..but I still toy with idea of stop reading books or buying them. 

well flipkart fella message blinks on my phone : your books will reach by 7 pm. 

Hmm…hope that’s the last . but we both know the answer. Don’t we…??...